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Cruisin’ for a brew-sin’: SCOTUS to resolve circuit split over unionization at Starbucks

The boiling dispute over the unionization of baristas is heading to the U.S. Supreme Court (SCOTUS). Section 10(j) of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) authorizes federal courts to issue preliminary court orders...

Mar 01, 2024 · Employment Law Letter · California · Mid-Atlantic · Delaware · Maryland · New Jersey · Pennsylvania · Virginia · New England · Connecticut · Maine · Massachusetts · New Hampshire · Rhode Island · Vermont · Southeast · Alabama · Florida · Georgia · Louisiana · Mississippi · West · Alaska · Arizona · Hawaii · Nevada · Oregon · Washington

DOL’s final independent contractor rule returns to six-factor test

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has published its final rule on the classification of workers as either employees or independent contractors (ICs). Under the rule, the DOL returns to the “totality of the circumstances...

Mar 01, 2024 · Employment Law Letter · California · Great Lakes · Illinois · Indiana · Michigan · Ohio · Wisconsin · Midsouth · Kentucky · North Carolina · South Carolina · Tennessee · West Virginia · Midwest · Arkansas · Kansas · Missouri · Oklahoma · Mountain West · Colorado · Idaho · Montana · New Mexico · Utah · Wyoming · Upper Midwest · Iowa · Minnesota · Nebraska · North Dakota · South Dakota · West · Alaska · Arizona · Hawaii · Nevada · Oregon · Washington

New Texas law prohibits COVID-19 vaccine mandates by private employers

Texas Governor Greg Abbott’s latest push against vaccine mandates takes form in a new law now in force in the Lone Star State. Senate Bill 7 (SB 7) prohibits private employers from adopting or enforcing certain COVID-19...

Mar 01, 2024 · Employment Law Letter · Texas · Midwest · Arkansas · Kansas · Missouri · Oklahoma

Final independent contractor rule rejects ‘core factor’ test

On January 9, 2024, the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) Wage and Hour Division (WHD) released a final rule—going into effect beginning March 11—that will determine whether a worker can be classified as an independent...

Mar 01, 2024 · Employment Law Letter · Mid-Atlantic · Delaware · Maryland · New Jersey · Pennsylvania · Virginia · New England · Connecticut · Maine · Massachusetts · New Hampshire · Rhode Island · Vermont

What employers can learn from the UAW and Big Three strike

In mid-September, the United Auto Workers (UAW), which represents nearly 150,000 auto workers, began targeted strikes at certain factories and warehouses around the country run by Ford, GM, and Stellantis NV (formerly...

Mar 01, 2024 · Employment Law Letter · California · Great Lakes · Illinois · Indiana · Michigan · Ohio · Wisconsin · Mid-Atlantic · Delaware · Maryland · New Jersey · Pennsylvania · Virginia · Midsouth · Kentucky · North Carolina · South Carolina · Tennessee · West Virginia · Midwest · Arkansas · Kansas · Missouri · Oklahoma · Mountain West · Colorado · Idaho · Montana · New Mexico · Utah · Wyoming · New England · Connecticut · Maine · Massachusetts · New Hampshire · Rhode Island · Vermont · Southeast · Alabama · Florida · Georgia · Louisiana · Mississippi · Upper Midwest · Iowa · Minnesota · Nebraska · North Dakota · South Dakota · West · Alaska · Arizona · Hawaii · Nevada · Oregon · Washington

Non-FMLA leave can’t be designated as FMLA leave

Q One of our employees is on intermittent Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) leave. She’s gotten sick and claims it’s unrelated to her reasons for being on FMLA leave. Can we include these days in her FMLA time and have...

Mar 01, 2024 · Employment Law Letter · Midsouth · Kentucky · North Carolina · South Carolina · Tennessee · West Virginia

OK, just a little pinprick: Considerations in mandatory vaccination policies

Employers worried about the safety of employees and clients, especially during the annual flu season, have moved toward implementing vaccination policies in the workplace. At the time of this writing, health officials...

Mar 01, 2024 · Employment Law Letter · California · Midsouth · Kentucky · North Carolina · South Carolina · Tennessee · West Virginia · Mountain West · Colorado · Idaho · Montana · New Mexico · Utah · Wyoming · New England · Connecticut · Maine · Massachusetts · New Hampshire · Rhode Island · Vermont · Southeast · Alabama · Florida · Georgia · Louisiana · Mississippi · Upper Midwest · Iowa · Minnesota · Nebraska · North Dakota · South Dakota

Texas court: FedEx delivers timely win in Section 1981 lawsuit

A creative FedEx policy gets the credit in beating back a $366,160,000 jury verdict in a race discrimination case arising in Houston. Read on for news you can use! Section 1981 vs. Title VII Section 1981 of the Civil...

Mar 01, 2024 · Employment Law Letter · Texas

Calculating overtime for employee with two different pay rates

Q A restaurant employee works two jobs—as kitchen help earning above the minimum wage and as waitstaff earning $2.13 per hour plus tips. He works less than 40 hours per week in each job but works over 40 hours for the...

Mar 01, 2024 · Employment Law Letter · Great Lakes · Illinois · Indiana · Michigan · Ohio · Wisconsin

7th Circuit rejects manager’s work-from-home accommodation request

During the COVID-19 pandemic, many employees were required to work from home. Did that collective experience rewrite the rules for employers’ ability to require in-person attendance at the workplace? A decision from the...

Mar 01, 2024 · Employment Law Letter · Great Lakes · Illinois · Indiana · Michigan · Ohio · Wisconsin

New Jersey domestic workers gain added protections

On January 12, 2024, Governor Phil Murphy signed the New Jersey Domestic Workers Bill of Rights Act (S-723/A-822), establishing a broad range of rights and employment protections for domestic workers. Domestic workers...

Mar 01, 2024 · Employment Law Letter · Mid-Atlantic · Delaware · Maryland · New Jersey · Pennsylvania · Virginia

When discussing accommodations, follow interactive process

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Massachusetts General Law Chapter 151B (Chapter 151B) both require employers to provide reasonable accommodations absent undue hardship to employees and to engage in an...

Mar 01, 2024 · Employment Law Letter · Great Lakes · Illinois · Indiana · Michigan · Ohio · Wisconsin · Midsouth · Kentucky · North Carolina · South Carolina · Tennessee · West Virginia · Midwest · Arkansas · Kansas · Missouri · Oklahoma · Mountain West · Colorado · Idaho · Montana · New Mexico · Utah · Wyoming · New England · Connecticut · Maine · Massachusetts · New Hampshire · Rhode Island · Vermont · Southeast · Alabama · Florida · Georgia · Louisiana · Mississippi · Upper Midwest · Iowa · Minnesota · Nebraska · North Dakota · South Dakota

Pandemic didn’t take away right to discharge an employee who violates policy

In an unpublished opinion issued January 31, 2024, the U.S. 4th Circuit Court of Appeals (whose rulings apply to all employers in North Carolina, South Carolina, and West Virginia) dismissed a case without a trial in...

Mar 01, 2024 · Employment Law Letter · Midsouth · Kentucky · North Carolina · South Carolina · Tennessee · West Virginia